One Health Core Competencies

In times of global change and challenges such as the recent Covid-19 pandemic, the necessity for a holistic approach is more evident than ever. “One Health” is such a holistic approach that includes not only human medicine, but also veterinary medicine, environmental and social sciences.

This is an online course, in a blended learning format (Zoom-Moodle), in which students will learn about the Core Competencies, the foundation of the One Health approach, which include interdisciplinary teamwork, systemic thinking and a basic understanding of the approach. Students will receive 3 ECTS upon completion of the course.

The One Health Core Competencies course consists of a blended learning system, including synchronous and asynchronous units.

• In the asynchronous sessions, the participants will be led through the theoretical foundations of interdisciplinary teamwork, systems thinking and the One Health approach through self-study with interactive elements on the Moodle-platform. Participants will also see illustrative examples of current One Health scientific cases.
• During the synchronous sessions, participants will meet online via ‘Zoom’ and work together as multi- and interdisciplinary teams. They will reflect and discuss on the One Health approach and solve a real-world One Health problem using an interactive problem-based learning method. The learned content will be reviewed in interactive tasks on Moodle. As a final assignment, participants will develop a written report – the “Mission Plan” for solving the One Health problem.

We also have a guest lecturer (Marija Jevtic) from UNS supporting the course.

Learning objectives

At the end of the module, participants will be able to:

• Identify the One Health approach, its definitions, history, and current discourses.
• Recognise current global health challenges, identify underlying problems and define their dimensions and impact on human, animal and environmental health systems.
• Manage multi- and interdisciplinary teams, understand roles and responsibilities, familiarise with concepts and vocabulary of other disciplines.
• Develop solutions for One Health problems and plan their implementation.
• Be aware of the big picture and interdependencies of stakeholders in global health challenges.

Requirements

• Target Group: Master/ PhD students or students in their in their 7th semester or higher in undergraduate programmes longer than 6 semesters
• Selection strategy: Students should write a motivational letter of 100-200 words explaining why they want to take this course and how this course will contribute to their education.
• Number of participants: 50.
• Certificate/ECTS: 3 ECTS and a certificate.
• Language: English.